Properties of Carbon Fiber and its Applications

Properties of Carbon Fiber and its Applications

Prince M Patel 1 Harsh N Patel 2 Shyam D Kotecha 3

1. Student, B.E. (Civil), Faculty of Technology and Engineering, The M.S. University of Baroda, Vadodara, Gujarat ,India

2. Student, B.E. (Civil), Faculty of Technology and Engineering, The M.S. University of Baroda, Vadodara, Gujarat, India

3. Student, B.E. (Civil), Faculty of Technology and Engineering, The M.S. University of Baroda, Vadodara, Gujarat, India

Abstract

Over the ages as we have evolved, so has our engineering and researching skill sets. Even today, we are constantly innovating, researching and developing technology in pursuit of a sustainable future. Throughout this evolution, researches and engineers have found themselves in constant search for new and better materials to optimally manage the performance cost trade-off in the construction sector. Many new raw materials have been discovered and many ground- breaking composite have been developed, of which not all but some have proved to be a phenomenal success. Carbon fiber is one of these materials, which is usually used in combination with other materials to form a composite. The properties of carbon fiber, such as high stiffness, high tensile strength, low weight, high chemical resistance, high temperature tolerance and low thermal expansion makes them one of the most popular material in civil engineering possessing strength up to five times that of steel and being one- third its weight, we might as well call it the superhero of the material world.

• History:

  The 20th century saw a roller coaster ride in the demand for carbon fiber. Threats to peace increased the demand for carbon fiber for defence purposes mid- century. A downturn in defence needs result in a reduction in production of carbon fiber toward the close of the century. By the beginning of the 21st century, new applications and new markets sent the production of carbon fibers on an upswing. Despite a downturn in 2007-2008, worldwide demand increased to

  approximately 40,000 metric tons in 2010. Carbon fibers have revolutionized the technology of materials. It is no wonder that the National Academy of Engineering voted carbon fibers one of the 20 top engineering achievements of the 20th century and the American Chemical Society named the development of high performance carbon fibers a National Historic Chemical Landmark in September 2003.

• What is Carbon Fiber?

Carbon fibers are a type of high-performance fiber available for civil engineering application. It is also called graphite fiber or carbon graphite, carbon fiber consists of very thin strands of the element carbon. Carbon fibers have high tensile strength and are very strong for their size. In fact, carbon fiber might be the strongest material. Carbon fibers have high elastic modulus and fatigue strength than those of glass fibers. Considering service life, studies suggests that carbon fiber reinforced polymers have more potential than agamid and glass fibers. They also are highly chemically resistant and have high temperature tolerance with low thermal expansion and corrosion resistance.

Each fiber is 5-10 microns in diameter. To give a sense of how small that is, one micron (um) is 0.000039 inches. One strand of spider web silk is usually between 3-8 microns. Carbon fibers are twice as stiff as steel and five times as strong as steel, (per unit of weight). . The most important factors determining the physical properties of carbon fiber are degree of carbonization (carbon content, usually more than 92% by weight) and orientation of the layered carbon planes (the ribbons).

Carbon fiber-reinforced composite materials are used to make aircraft and spacecraft parts, racing car bodies, golf club shafts, bicycle frames, fishing rods, automobile springs, sailboat masts, and many other components where light weight and high strength are needed. Carbon fibers high strength, light weight and resistance to corrosion make it an ideal reinforcing material.

Plain Carbon fiber weave Carbon fiber twill weave

1. Carbon Fiber has High Strength to Weight Ratio (also known as specific strength):

   Strength of a material is the force per unit area at failure, divided by its density. Any material that is strong and light has a favourable Strength/weight ratio. Materials such as Aluminium, titanium, magnesium, Carbon and glass fiber, high strength steel alloys all have good strength to weight ratios. It is not surprising that Balsa wood comes in with a high strength to weight ratio. The following figures are offered for comparison only and will vary depending on composition, alloy, type of spider, density of wood etc. The units are kN.m/kg.

   Graph: stress v/s strain

   Table 1- Carbon Fiber has High Strength to Weight Ratio (also known as specific strength)

   Spectra fiber	3619
   Kevlar	2514
   Carbon Fiber	2457
   Glass Fiber	1307
   Spider Silk	1069
   Carbon Epoxy Composite	785
   Balsa axial load	521
   Steel alloy	254
   Aluminium alloy	222
   Polypropylene	89
   Oak	87
   Nylon	69

   Note that strength and rigidity are different properties, strength is resistance to breaking, and rigidity is resistance to bending or stretching.

2. Carbon Fiber is very rigid:

   Rigidity or stiffness of a material is measured by its Young Modulus and measures how much a material deflects under stress. Carbon fiber reinforced plastic is over 4 times stiffer than Glass reinforced plastic, almost 20 times more than pine, 2.5 times greater than aluminium.

3. Carbon fiber is Corrosion Resistant and Chemically Stable:

   Although carbon fiber themselves do not deteriorate, Epoxy is sensitive to sunlight and needs to be protected. Other matrices (whatever the carbon fiber is imbedded in) might also be reactive.

4. Carbon fiber is electrically Conductive:

   This feature can be useful and be a nuisance. In Boat building it has to be taken into account just as Aluminium conductivity comes into play. Carbon fiber conductivity can facilitate Galvanic Corrosion in fittings. Careful installation can reduce this problem. Carbon Fiber dust can accumulate in a shop and cause sparks or short circuits in electrical appliances and equipment.

5. Fatigue Resistance is good:

   Resistance to Fatigue in Carbon Fiber Composites is good. However when carbon fiber fails it usually fails catastrophically without much to announce its imminent break. Damage in tensile fatigue is seen as reduction in stiffness with larger numbers of stress cycles, (unless the temperature is high).

6. Carbon Fiber has good Tensile Strength:

   Tensile strength or ultimate strength is the maximum stress that a material can withstand while being stretched or pulled before necking, or failing. Necking is when the sample cross-section starts to significantly contract. If you take a strip of plastic bag, it will stretch and at one point will start getting narrow. This is necking. It is measured i Force per Unit area. Brittle materials such as carbon fiber do not always fail at the same stress level because of internal flaws. They fail at small strains. Testing involves taking a sample with a fixed cross-section area, and then pulling it gradually increasing the force until the sample changes shape or breaks. Fibers, such as carbon fibers, being only 2/10,000th of an inch in diameter, are made into composites of appropriate shapes in order to test. Units are MPa this table is offered as a comparison only since there are a great number of variables.

   Table 2- Carbon Fiber has good Tensile Strength

   Carbon steel	3600
   High density polyethylene (HDPE)	37
   Polypropylene	19.7-80
   High density polyethylene	37
   Stainless steel AISI 302	860
   Aluminium alloy 2014-T6	483
   Aluminium alloy 6063-T6	248
   E-Glass alone	3450
   E-Glass in a laminate	1500
   Carbon fiber alone	4127
   Carbon fiber in a laminate	1600
   Kevlar	2757
   Pine wood (parallel to grain)	40

7. Fire Resistance/Non Flammable:

   Depending upon the manufacturing process and the precursor material, carbon fiber can be quite soft and can be made into or more often integrated into protective clothing for fire fighting. Nickel coated fiber

   is an example. Because carbon fiber is also chemically very inert, it can be used where there is fire combined with corrosive agents. Carbon Fiber Blanket used as welding protection.

8. Thermal Conductivity of Carbon Fiber:

   Thermal conductivity is the quantity of heat transmitted through a unit thickness, in a direction normal to a surface of unit area, because of a unit temperature gradient, under steady conditions. In other words its a measure of how easily heat flows through a material

9. Low Coefficient of Thermal Expansion:

This is a measure of how much a material expands and contracts when the temperature goes up or down. Units are in Inch / inch degree F, as in other tables, the units are not as important as the comparison.

Low Coefficient of Thermal expansion makes carbon fiber suitable for applications where small movements can be critical. Telescope and other optical machinery is one such application.

Table 3- Low Coefficient of Thermal Expansion

1. Civil Engineering:

   Several structural engineering applications utilize carbon fiber reinforced polymer because of its potential construction benefits and cost effectiveness. The usual applications include strengthening structures made with concrete, steel, timber, masonry, and cast iron; Retrofitting to increasing the load capacity of old structures like bridges; to enhance shear strength and for flexure in reinforced concrete structures. Other

   applications include replacement for steel, pre-stressing materials and strengthening cast-iron beams.

2. Carbon Fiber in Flight:

   Carbon fiber has gone to the moon on spacecraft, but it is also used widely in aircraft components and structures, where its superior strength to weight ratio far exceeds that of any metal. 30% of all carbon fiber is used in the aerospace industry. From helicopters to gliders, fighter jets to micro lights, carbon fiber is playing its part, increasing range and simplifying maintenance.

3. Medical Applications:

   Carbon fiber offers several advantages over other materials in the medical field, including the fact that it is radiolucent transparent to X-rays and shows as black on X-ray images. It is used widely in imaging equipment structures to support limbs being X-rayed or treated with radiation. The use of carbon fiber to strengthen of damaged cruciate ligaments in the knee is being researched, but probably the most well known medical use is that of prosthetics artificial limbs.

4. Military:

   The applications in the military are very wide ranging from planes and missiles to protective helmets, providing strengthening and weight reduction across all military equipment. A new military application is announced almost every day. Perhaps the latest and most exotic military application is for small flapping wings on miniaturized flying drones, used for surveillance missions. Of course, we dont know about all military applications some carbon fiber uses will always remain part of black ops in more ways than one.

5. Automobile Industry:

As costs come down, carbon fiber is being more widely adopted in automobiles. Supercar bodies are built now, but its wider use is likely to be in internal components such as instrument housings and seat frames.

1. Carbon fibre plates are thin, strong and flexible, they can be designed and installed to provide a cost effective solution which does not detract visually from the original design of the structure.

2. It has high stiffness, high tensile strength, low weight, high chemical resistance, high temperature tolerance and one of the most popular materials in civil engineering.

3. It possesses strength up to five times that of steel and being one-third it weight.

4. It has more applications in civil engineering, military, sporting goods, in medical, in automobile industry, etc. so use of carbon fiber in construction is always effective and provides high strength to the structure.

1. Peter Morgan, Carbon Fibers and Their Composites, Published by: CRC Press (20th May 2005)

2. M.S. Shetty, Concrete Technology: Theory and Practice, 7th Edition, Publisher: S. Chand (2009)

3. Dr. Jackie Rehkopf, Automotive Carbon Fiber Composites: From Evolution to Implementation, ISBN of 978-0-7680-3495-0, Published by: SAE International (29th November 2011)

4. MDPI – Open Access Publishing, Issue: Materials/ December-2009, Title: Fabrication and Properties of Carbon Fibers, Author: Xiaosong Huang